Charlie Metro
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Charlie Metro (born Charles Moreskonich on April 28, 1919) was an outfielder for the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Athletics, as well as a manager for the Chicago Cubs and the Kansas City Royals. He adopted the name "Metro" from his father, Metro Moreskonich, a Ukrainian immigrant. At age 18, he attended a tryout camp for the St. Louis Browns, and he bounced around in the minor leagues. In 1940, he joined the Texarkana Liners, then an independent baseball team but which became affiliated with the Detroit Tigers. Due to his light hitting ability, he was never able to become a full-time starter, although he did make the Tigers club out of spring training in 1943. He was released by the Tigers in 1944, partly because of his attempts to organize a players union.
The Philadelphia Athletics picked him up, and, under the legendary Connie Mack, Metro won 'a shot' at starting center fielder; but his inability to hit consistently cost him this job. At the end of 1944 he joined the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League, where he played under another legendary manager, Casey Stengel. In 1947, he was hired as a manager within the New York Yankees organization, and soon he moved up the ranks to AAA. Eventually, he got his first big-league managing job with the Chicago Cubs in their "College of Coaches." He was fired after the 1962 season; then he joined the crosstown Chicago White Sox as a scout, but soon returned to managing in the PCL.
In 1968, Metro joined the front office of the expansion Kansas City Royals, where he had an active hand in the expansion draft. He took over as manager when Joe Gordon resigned after only one season at the helm. But there his stint as manager was shorter than his Cubs tenure, lasting only 54 games (19 wins-35 losses). He was replaced by future Hall of Famer Bob Lemon. Metro went back to scouting for the Tigers and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Then followed coaching stints with the Oakland Athletics, and in 1984 he returned to the Dodgers as a scout. After being dismissed by Los Angeles, Metro retired to his Denver ranch.
| Preceded by Lou Klein |
Chicago Cubs Manager 1962 |
Succeeded by Bob Kennedy |
| Preceded by Joe Gordon |
Kansas City Royals Manager 1970 |
Succeeded by Bob Lemon |
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